Friday Flashback: Rec. #90: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog

I decided to start doing Friday Flashbacks in case you missed some early posts the first time around. You're busy; I understand.

What: During the writers' strike of 2007-2008, Joss Whedon decided to demonstrate that "original online content" doesn't have to mean cats flushing toilets. So, he rounded up some people from past projects (Felicia Day, Nathan Fillion), some family members (sister-in-law Maurissa Tancharoen, brothers Jed and Zach), and one child-star-turned-Broadway-pro-turned-sitcom-star (Neil Patrick Harris*), and they put on a show. 

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is a villain's origin story. Dr. Horrible ("I have a Ph.D. in horribleness") is torn by two ambitions: to join the Evil League of Evil and to win the heart of Penny ("She works with the homeless and doesn't eat meat"). The warring desires converge when Dr. Horrible's nemesis, Captain Hammer ("corporate tool"), shows an interest in Penny.

Comparable to: It is Whedon through and through, with the humor, the distinct characters, the smart writing, and the surprisingly high stakes. As he did with the lauded "Once More, With Feeling" episode of Buffy, Whedon uses a musical framework to heighten emotional impact (with very pretty songs) even as his hyper-articulate characters work out their chaotic thoughts (with very clever lyrics).

Representative quote: "Destroying the status quo because the status is not quo. The world is a mess, and I just need to rule it."

You might not like if it: I think that a lot of people like at least one of the following things: musicals, Nathan Fillion, superheroes, Felicia Day, snarkiness, Joss Whedon, the strategic use of the word "balls," Neil Patrick Harris, equestrian super-villains. If you hate all of those things, then possibly, maybe, there's a chance you won't like this.

How to get it: Dr. Horrible is divided into three 15-minute acts (that's a total of 45 minutes for those keeping track). The DVD triples your viewing time because it has two full-length commentaries. One is an actual commentary, and the other is effectively a bonus musical. The excellent songs in Commentary! The Musical include "Better Than Neil" and "Nobody's Asian in the Movies."


*If you were Harris's HIMYM co-star Alyson Hannigan, an ex-Whedonite herself, wouldn't you be pissed that Whedon gave Doogie a lead role?

[Originally posted 3/30/11.]

Rec. #281 (abbrev.): Death in the Andamans

What: M.M. Kaye, 1930s, Bay of Bengal, violent storm, Christmas Eve picnic, Copper Randal, naval officer, murder, isolated on an island

Also known as Night on the Island.

Opening lines: "Something bumped lightly against the side of her bed and Copper Randal, awakening with a start, was astonished to find that her heart was racing."

Connections to previous Wreckage: Death in Zanzibar (Rec. #183), Death in Berlin (Rec. #244), Death in Kenya (FSoM #4)

Media News Item of the Day (#1)

"Early Hitchcock Films to Tour the U.S."

Related: 

Family Plot, Rec. #120

The Lady Vanishes, Rec. #225

Rope, Rec. #5

Shadow of a Doubt, Rec. #78

Spellbound, Rec. #185

Strangers on a Train, Rec. #166

The Trouble with Harry, Rec. #145

Friday Flashback: Rec. #85: Mr. Chartwell

I decided to start doing Friday Flashbacks in case you missed some early posts the first time around. You're busy; I understand.

What: Winston Churchill suffered from severe bouts of depression, which he called his "black dog." In Mr. Chartwell, author Rebecca Hunt presents the figurative black dog as an actual black dog (he prefers to be called "Black Pat") who divides his time between Churchill and Esther Hammerhans, a young woman with whom he's lodging.

Comparable to: Hunt's narrative voice reminds me a bit of Alan Bennett and Max Beerbohm (at different times).

Representative quote: "He made a welcoming sound over a mouthful of flapjack and shut his newspaper. He did the universally understood spin of his hand to show he couldn't understand why it was taking him so long to swallow. It was the spin that said, 'I'm bored of chewing; I can't believe I'm still chewing.'"

You might not like it if: You're a bit put off by Hunt's descriptions of Black Pat, which can be . . . vivid.

How to get it: Not only is this book in print, it's even quite a recent publication. So, you could actually go into a bookstore that sells new books and expect to see this on the shelf. (Also available at libraries, or for your Kindle.)


[Originally posted 3/26/11.]


Connections to other Wreckage: Zuleika Dobson by Max Beerbohm was Rec. #96, and Alan Bennett has shown up in Rec. #115, Rec. #169, and Rec. #260.

Rec. #280: The Outs

What: The Outs is a six-part web miniseries about the fallout after the end of a relationship. The series looks and feels like it should be programmed right before Girls on HBO, but instead it's on your computer, streaming for free.

Opening lines:
"Hi, I'm Jack."
"Whatever."

Representative dialogue:
"You said you wanted to kill him."
"No, I didn't. I said I wanted to outlive him."

You might not like it if: You have a low threshold for the number of scenes you can watch wherein the characters get high.

How to get it: You can go through Vimeo or just go to theouts.tv. Plus, there's a seventh episode coming in April! It's a Chanukah special.

Also: I have to mention that one of the main characters is named Oona and I can't seem to stop doing impressions of her.

Friday Flashback: Rec. #86: Inconscientes (Unconscious)

I decided to start doing Friday Flashbacks in case you missed some early posts the first time around. You're busy; I understand.

What: It's a Freudian screwball comedy! How can you resist that? You can't. In Barcelona, 1913, Alma and her brother-in-law embark on a Sherlock-style investigation to figure out why her psychiatrist husband has run off, leaving her alone and very pregnant. Their only clue? The case studies of four of his patients. Also, there is hypnosis, cross-dressing, and a final tango. It is wicked fun.

Comparable to: A little bit Amelie, a little bit Preston Sturges, a little bit whodunit. (If you've read any of my other posts, you can't possibly be surprised that I like it.)

You might not like it if: Mutton. Chops. Mutton chops!

How to get it: The English translation of the title, Unconscious, is a bit vague, so be careful in your search. It might help to search using the original Spanish title, Inconscientes. It might also help to know that the film is from 2004. Also, please, be prepared to spend a significant amount of time coveting and/or marveling at the gorgeous hair of the lead actress. It is amazing.

[Originally posted 3/26/11.]

List #26: Content That Has Actually Caused Me to Throw Something Across a Room

Some of these I love and some of them I loathe. Feel free to guess which is which!

1. Angels and Ages [book], Adam Gopnik (see also Rec. #39)

Trigger: The prologue.

What I yelled: * "'He' is a not a gender-neutral pronoun! Using the word 'man' to mean 'people' makes you sound like a dick!"

Who's to blame: Adam Gopnik. He should know better.

2. Berkeley Square [miniseries] (see also Personal Wreck Week, List #1)

Trigger: The final scene.

What I yelled: * "That's it?! You put us through all that for this?!"

Who's to blame: The living conditions in the early 1900s; they weren't great.

3. All Jane Eyre adaptations before the 2006 version with Ruth Wilson [movies, miniseries] (see also List #16)

Trigger: Usually the first time Jane speaks as an adult.

What I yelled: * "You're ruining it!!!"

Who's to blame: William Christy Cabanne, Robert Stevenson, Delbert Mann, Franco Zeffirelli, among others.

4. Light in August [book], William Faulkner

Trigger: The cumulative effect.

What I yelled: * "The dust, the dust! Dear gods, the dust!"

Who's to blame: The dust.

5. My Mad Fat Diary [television series]

Trigger: The party at Rae's house.

What I yelled: * "How can I be expected to deal with this?! I can't, I can't."

Who's to blame: Me. I should be emotionally stable enough to handle watching events in the life of a 16-year-old in the mid-'90s.

  

6. Started Early, Took My Dog [book], Kate Atkinson (see also Rec. #270)

Trigger: Reaching the last page.

What I yelled: * "And?!?!?!"

Who's to blame: Me, for being greedy.

7. State of Play [miniseries] (see also Rec. #104)

Trigger: Twist number . . . I lost count.

What I yelled: * "Damn you, Paul Abbott!"

Who's to blame: Paul Abbott, for being so clever.




* While throwing; minus the expletives

List #25: Happy Birthday, Douglas Adams

 

The Salmon of Doubt (Rec. #4)

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Rec. #42)

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (Rec. #162)

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Rec. #198)

Life, the Universe and Everything (Rec. #230)

The Deeper Meaning of Liff (Rec. #239)

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish (Rec. #279)

Friday Flashback: Rec. #74: Micmacs

I decided to start doing Friday Flashbacks in case you missed some early posts the first time around. You're busy; I understand.

What: The French film Micmacs contains some of my favorite things: A group of misfits banding together, a caper in the name of a progressive cause, and gorgeous shots by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. The director of Amelie gives us the story of Bazil, whose life has been all but ruined by two big companies that manufacture weapons. He and his aforementioned band of misfits concoct a complicated revenge scheme against their little corner of the military-industrial complex. Or, as Amelie would say, they have a stratagem.

Comparable to: Like Buster Keaton had a bunch of eccentric friends who liked to tinker with junk. But very beautiful.

Representative quote: 

"I'm Bazil." 

"I know. You have a slug in your brain box. I know a family who'll adopt you."

You might not like it if: Too much whimsy makes your brain box ache.

How to get it: Watch instantly on Amazon, or watch on disc in most other ways.



[Originally posted 4/14/11.]

Rec. #279: So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish

What: Arthur Dent makes his way back to Earth, which is quite an accomplishment since the planet was destroyed three books previously to make way for a hyperspace bypass.

Opening lines: "Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the Western Spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun. Orbiting this at a distance of roughly ninety-eight million miles is an utterly insignificant little blue-green planet whose ape-descended life forms are so amazingly primitive that they still think digital watches are a pretty neat idea."

Representative quote: "His name was simply John Watson, though he preferred to be called --- and some of his friends had now reluctantly agreed to do this --- Wonko the Sane."

Bonus representative quote: "She was most immensely relieved to think that virtually everything that anybody had ever told her was wrong."

You might not like it if: This was the first story in The Hitchhiker's Guide series that Douglas Adams wrote specifically as a book instead of adapting it from something else. You might object to a result that's slightly more straightforward than usual.

How to get it: Buyable, borrowable, Kindle-able

Connections to previous Wreckage: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Rec. #42); The Restaurant at the End of the Universe (Rec. #198); Life, the Universe and Everything (Rec. #230)

Friday Flashback: Rec. #45: Harold and Maude

I decided to start doing Friday Flashbacks in case you missed some early posts the first time around. You're busy; I understand.

What: Harold Chasen is a privileged young man obsessed with death. He stages fake suicides, drives a hearse, and attends strangers' funerals. At one of these funerals, he meets Maude, who is equally driven by a love for life. She dances and sings, rescues trees, and steals cars, and Harold quickly falls in love her. Harold's mother, priest, and psychiatrist all object to the relationship, though, mainly because Maude is 79 years old. Ah, l'amour.

Comparable to: A major influence on many writers/directors. In my opinion, Wes Anderson has spent most of his career trying to recapture the quirky, happy/morbid vibe of this film.

Representative quote: "You know, at one time I used to break into pet shops to liberate the canaries. But I decided that was an idea way before its time. Zoos are full, prisons are overflowing . . . oh my, how the world still dearly loves a cage."

You might not like it if: You have a very low threshold for quirk.

How to get it: Buy it, don't borrow. You have to buy a movie that has someone named Vivan Pickles in it. That's just a fact.

[Originally posted 2/13/11.]